Notes and Observations from Navy's 16-5 Win Over VMI

A few observations, storylines and reactions from Navy’s season-opening 16-5 win over VMI today at Rip Miller Field in Annapolis, Md.

R.J. Wickham’s Next in the Line of Navy Keepers

The highly touted sophomore made 12 saves, including the first four he saw in shutting out the Keydets as the Midshipmen built a 7-0 first quarter lead. In all, he let in just two even strength goals and looked confident both controlling Navy’s defense and in the clearing game.

“I don’t think there were any shots that went in that he should’ve had,” coach Richie Meade said. “I thought R.J. played pretty well.” Wickham’s opportunity to start comes after he split time with seniors Matt Coughlin and Tommy Phelan last year. Though he's being pushed by a host of goalies on the roster, including heralded plebe Nolan Hickey, Wickham came into the year as a clear starter. It seemed like the security in his position helped him play more confidently.

“It feels real good,” Wickham said of his status as starter. “Still, I'm getting good competition in practice and they're keeping me up.”

Another note on Wickham — he was extremely good down low. Whether VMI's scouting report told shooters to aim for the low-middle or that was a hold over from early season shooting drills, Wickham gobbled up three good low bounce shots without giving up a rebound.

VMI Figured out their Goalie Situation, Too

Senior two-year captain Sean McCoy started in net for the Keydets and let in seven goals while stopping two before being relieved by sophomore Kelly McMinn to start the second quarter. McMinn made eight saves and allowed nine goals, but did stop the bleeding in the second as the Keydets used three Midshipmen penalties to score three times and cut the Navy lead to 7-3 before Joe Lennon ended the drought with 1:05 remaining in the half. McMinn opened with nearly 14 scoreless minutes.

“They've been in a goalie battle all preseason and I think Kelly stepped in and did a great job, and I think he's our new starter,” coach Jeff Shirk said. McMinn is out of Junipero Serra Catholic High, outside of San Diego, and was seeing his first game action.

Navy’s Diversified Offense

In putting up 16 goals (their highest scoring output since they dropped 19 on Carolina March 2, 2007), the Mids got scoring contributions from 12 players, though no one had more than three points. That type of balance and interplay is what the Navy offense was missing last season when they only had five guys break the 20-point barrier and at times fell into roots during which they settled for alley dodges and outside shots.

“What’s been stopping us on offense at times is us,” Meade said. “We’ve got guys that can dodge, we do a pretty good job of moving the ball. I think we shot the ball better, I think we were a little bit more patient, I think we were a little bit more organized.”

Leading the ship was attackman Tim Paul (1, 2), a senior with loads of experience who's opened his game up beyond his really nice time-and-room shot. Flanking him are Andy Warner (3, 0) and Brendan Connors (0, 2), who seem to be off to a good start in defined scorer/distributor roles. At the midfield, the first group of Joe Lennon (1,1), Pat Moran (3, 0) and Nikk Davis (2, 1) present significant matchup issues with the size of the first two and Davis' quickness with the ball. In the second group, Kevin Doyle (1, 0) and Basil Daratsos (1, 0) showed a willingness to put their heads down and go to the goal, while Brian Striffler (1, 2) made some nice plays moving the ball.

Two Three-Minute Stick Violations for the Mids

One of the more surprising developments of the afternoon were the pair of illegal crosse penalties that Warner and Paul drew at the start of the second and fourth quarters, respectively.

Their impact on the game was obvious (Warner's allowed VMI to halt Navy's run), but what's more significant is what they potentially mean in a year when the NCAA stick specification changes went into effect. Both heads were deemed too narrow, both at the second point up from the base of the head (there are now four width measurements). Meade, who was on the committee to change the rules, said his players aren't likely to have tried to narrow their heads, and he added that Navy hasn't had an illegal stick in nearly a decade.

“We're not that sophisticated a group where we bake them or put them in microwaves,” Meade said. “Our guys are thinking about thermodynamics and stuff like that.”

He went on to say, “Possibly the measurement was in the wrong place because we got lacrosse sticks from the manufacturer for this year, and unless the guy picked the wrong one up going onto the field, those are legal sticks.”

Another odd note about Paul's violation was that he scored 1:34 remaining in the third and had his stick checked with no issue. Then, after drawing a penalty with 24 seconds remaining in the half, was checked while in the penalty box in between periods and drew a flag. One potential note, given that it was the spot three inches up from the base of the where both heads were deemed narrower than three inches — that spot tends to be where sidewalls collapse inward when pressure is applied to the top of a stick (for example, when a player leans on his stick). Perhaps they didn't bounce back as well given the cold weather, but either way it's something to watch.

Tim Moran an All-American?

The senior midfielder was preseason All-MAAC after putting up 25-10 last year, and he finished with three goals, including both of the Keydets even strength tallies. He's a bit undersized and Shirk called him a late-bloomer, but he's smooth with the ball, has good vision and a quick release on his shot. He made such an impact that both Shirk and Meade made mention of his being able to play at any top 20 program and potentially garnering All-America honors at the end of the season.